Left for India - May 1992 under the auspices of High Point Chapel.
A few months later that same year, had a visit from Dr. Anderson, President of BMM and the then Field Administrator and his wife - Mr. and Mrs. Bill Mosher, who invited us to join BMM.
Under the guidance of our Home Church Pastor, Rev. Bill Park, and another close friend and mentor, Dr. James Garlow, decided to join BMM, but could only come in 1994 for the Candidate Seminar. Came in 2005 - 2006 to raise the remaining support needed, as advised by BMM.
1992 - 1995 - Lived in the big city of Bangalore, Karnataka, so PV could work on his Ph.D. Dissertation at a large Seminary Library there.
1993 - Had a geologist friend send in a water finding team to check the possibilities of water on this very barren mountain that PV was looking to buy. They looked on the flatter portions where it was most likely to find the water, but didn't find any. At PV's urging, and much against their own better judgement, they looked half way up the hill, a place where water was, according to them, never available. Found a great well half way up, and 3 others scattered in the prospective property. Praise the Lord!!!
1994 - Bought 40 acres of property in Jonnalagadda, considered totally waste land, a gentle little mountain slope, which PV felt the Lord's urging to buy for the Ministry even while in the USA in 1991. Dug the 4 bore wells - and as most of those come in late at night, it was pitch dark when the bore well fellows, our family consisting of our 3 daughters, PV, his Mother and I and a few friends, hit the water, which gushed higher than the rig itself. And then, all of our family and the totally surprised onlookers, watched a normally cool and calm and collected PV dance to the Lord for joy and praise Him for His faithfulness.
May, 1995 - Moved to the village of Jonnalagadda, where PV was born and brought up, and lived for 17 years, in an orthodox Hindu home.
1996 - Bought 26 acres more, so now have a 66 acre property - remember the 66 books of the Bible!
Fenced in the property - a massive task, with 1,000 fence posts, made of concrete and steel girders, hand poured in PV's Mother's back yard. Then 4 strands had to be hand strung on the fence posts, which meant 2 guys carrying the huge rolls of barbed wire, on a bamboo pole, up and down very rugged terrain, much of it up and down. When the guy in front walked up, the barbed wire rolled on to the shoulder of the guy behind! Many tetanus injections for different folks who came and completed the enormous task.
1996 to date - Huge project of first planting various fruit and wood trees, to see which would grow best, as we couldn't get expert advise. Through trial and error, hit upon Mango and Red Sanders - a fruit and wood tree respectively, that do the best on that very rocky and barren soil of Mount Zion. Now have in excess of 2,500 trees on the property - once considerd so barren that if water buffaloes grazed there during the day, my Mother-in-law said that they did not give milk in the evenings!
1997 - Drip irrigation provided out of 2 bore wells for the hundreds of trees.
1998 - Began meeting with an architect, recommeded to us by another good Christian man, in the town an hour and a half away, one way. Had plans drawn up for our home, and as we couldn't live so far away from the village by ourselves, safety concerns, had 3, smaller, 2 bedroom homes also planned at the same time. PV decided not to contract it out to save costs, so for the next 2 years, gave ourselves to the project without the benefit of Home Depot and such! With very little advertising, had to go to Vijayawada, with our entire family, almost every week, a 70 km. trip, that took exactly an hour and a half each way, for every thing. And had to go from little shop to little shop to check out things too. Hot, dusty and very tiring days.
2000 - Moved to The Hill, with 3 Bible College students, and one lecturer besides ourselves. Our oldest went to the US to complete High School, while the younger 2 lived in the one small home while we lived in the other, as they did A Beka Video Home School, and because so much room was available anyways!
College students lived and cooked in the last of the 3 homes while classes were held outside under the trees.
By the end of that year, we had 7 Bible College Students, and a good cook for us all. Days were filled with building work, classes for the students and our girls, and evenings were busy with the most fiercely played untutored Volley ball that it has been our privilege to participate and watch. Sometimes these went on to well past midnight with lights, when it was cool.
2000 to date - Have trained over 40 Bible College students, 20 of who work with us in our fellowhip, while 20 work independently or with other Ministries.
Have built a good Church and a small home for the Pastor in 10 villages, and have property in 3 others.
2006 - 2007 - With the rising need of a quality education for our MK's, started a small Telugu medium Nursery through Grade 5 Elementary School on The Hill. With a demand from the communities around us, we opened it to them too. So, we had an enrollment of 50 that year, 13 of who were our MKs.
2007 - 2008 - Enrollment went up to 70 with English medium being introduced.
2008 - 2009 - 96 students were enrolled, 20 of them our MKs, who live on The Hill with us. 3 single lady teachers live on campus too, and one young man. The Headmaster and the guy teacher are both trained engineers - one of them in computers.
2008 - 2009 - Another very well qualified gentleman, Mr. Gideon, has come to join us, he holds 6 degrees - 2 of them Ph.D.s. He came to The Hill while PV and I were in the US, and longed to meet the folks who had done so much, and then after meeting us, decided to give up his very well paying job and come for Ministry. He is currently working on Accreditation for the School with our Government, and is looking at a possible enrollment of over 200 children this coming academic year - starting June 5 through 10.
2008 - After meeting and discussing his Ministry goals with the very capable and good Bible teacher and preacher, Mr. Swamy, introduced to PV by his friend, he decided to come work with us as the Dean of the Bible College. Has worked well with getting students, arranging visiting lecturers, evangelisitc meetings in our 17 Churches, and general overview alongside PV. Has taken several modules offered by Dallas Profs. in India. Waiting to see how the Lord will work through him.
Graduation Pictures